Wharf or pier



June 5, 1928.

' M. uPsoN WHARF OR PIER Filed June 13, 1923 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 M awweubo'c Maxwell M l/pso/z. flbtocmeg-v June 5, 1928;

- M. M. UPSON WHARF 0R PIER 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 13, 1923 lllllllLL R EMWV anon wot Maxwell M Z/pson. Gummy June 5, 1928. 672,102

M. M. UPSON WHARF 0R PIER Filed June 15, 1923 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 awventoz .MaxweZ/M Upson. ax, M WW there say,

Patented June 5, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATIENT, OFFICE.

MAXWELL u. mean; or new YORK, N. Y.-

wHAnr on HER.

ipplicationfiled J 'une 13, 1923. serial No. 645,060.

TQ ,This invention relates to wharf orpier constructions, and while it is useful in a large variety of situations it is designed (in the'form herein illustrated) for use in rivers, deltas, estuaries,-bay s, and the like, Jwhere the underlying bed is composed of soft material to great depths, or where there is an extreme variation between high-and low water orwhere both these conditions are found. For example, it is well known that in the Mississippi'River the difference between high and low water'is very great.

.Moreover the soil composing-the-bed of the Mississippi (at least in the lower reaches of the river)- is soft to a considerable depth, and hence affords no secure anchorageto piles. The result is that great difficulty has been experienced in building in parts of that river, wharves which will stand. for an;

extended period of time the severe stresses to which they are subjected, as by the impact of steamboats in making alanding, the swift currentat times incident to .high water, the outflow ofaccumulated silt as the high water recedes, and other harmful influences. I have therefore been led to devise my present invention which has for its object to provide a wharfor pier construction which can be erected at reasonable cost and which.

will withstand indefinitely the destructive agencies encountered in suchlocations as the lower reaches of the Mississippi, where, for example, the bed soil is soft to a depthof a hundred feet or more and where the vertical difference between low and high water is upwards of fifty feet. To this and. other ends the invention which I desire to cover by Letters Patent embraces 7 all? the QI1OV6lfeatures hereinafter described.

In carrying out the invention in the preferred manner, concrete piles are driven into the river bed in a plurality of transverse groups or series, forming bays, the' piles being as long as possible and sunk far enough to bring their upper ends to a point about, half way between average high and 1 Thus if. the differaverage low water. ence between high and low water is fifty feet the piles would stand twenty or twentyfive. feet above low water. Y Some -of the piles in each group may be given .a;trans-. verse batter or slant, to aid in resisting bending stresses'such as would be caused by a steamboat or other vessel ramming the wharf. On top of the piles, and integral is framedstructureof concrete having a deck (which may be of wood) and extending high enough above they piling bays to bring the deck above'high water. This superstructure is composed of bays, all parts of which are integrally connected, and its elements are spacedwi'dely, as are the piles also, so as to cause the minimum obstruction.

to the river current consistent with the desired rigidity and strength of the wharf, the main portion of which, it will be understood,- must in some if not most cases stand out in the river a considerable distance from low water mark onthe sloping bank or 'levee.' One or more'approaches, prefera'bly'of. the same jconstructionas the main portion of the .wharf, connect the same to the bank for the passage of trucks and teams, and I may also provide one or more transverse piers or stifl'ening'stmctures extending to or toward the bank. These stifl'eners also provide confor the purpose, if desired. I

A construction such as is briefly described above is illustrated in the accompanylng drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view, showing a long wharf set well out from the bank, with an approach at each end, and-provided with two stifi'eners between the approaches. In this figure the water in the river is shown at a high stage. I

Fig. 2 is a detail cross sectionabouton line 22 of Fig.1. In this figure a low stage of water is indicated by the line 1-1. b

Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view of a portion of the decked superstructure. i

Fig. 4: is a detail side View, from the right of 2, of a portion of the superstructure. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional plan view of one of the footings of the wharf, taken about one at each" end,'and two stiffeners 14, 15,

the first of the latter extending to the bank 11. The substructure, of the main portion venient storage space and may have sheds the wharf is composed lung. substan? tially vertical concrete piles 16, Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5, arranged in transverse rows or groups which are spaced apart longitudinally to form bays. At the outer end of each group or row are two batter piles 17 extending inwardly (toward the bank) and at the other end two batter piles 18, 19, the former eX- tending inwardly and the latter outwardly. The approach piling is also of concrete and may be and preferably is similarly arranged,

'as may also be the piling of the stiffeners,

22, extending inwardly and outwardly.

The concrete superstructure of the main portion and approaches comprises transverse sills or caps 23, Figs. 2, 3, 4L and 5, one on each row of piles and integral therewith, the reinforcing members of the piles projecting into the sills, as indicated in Fig. 2, to bond the parts together. At each end the sills are connected by longitudinal members 2 1, integral therewith, and on each sill are three columns integral therewith, two end columns 25, 26, and a center column 27, supporting transverse beams 28, integral with the columns and connected by longitudinal joists 29 integral with the beams. These joists are suflicient in number for supporting a deck 80 preferably of concrete. This is not only the floor of the wharf but also constitutes a wide horizontal girder which serves to stiffen the entire structure. Diagonal braces, as31, F lgs. 3 and 4, may be provided for additional stillness, between the tops of the end colun'ins 25, 26, and the adjacent sills 23, In most cases bracing in alternate pairs of bays will be found sufficient, and the braces on the side next to the bank may be omit-ted in some instances, as in Fig. 2. Diagonal braces may also be I r0- vided between the columns 26 and 2:, as 31 31 Fig. 3, in each or some of the transverse bents comprisingthe sills 23, columns 26, 27, and transverse beams or cross-bearers 28. It will be understood that the braces are preferably integral with the parts which they adjoin.

Mooring bitts 32 are shown on the pier, Fig. 1. A row of'wooden fender piles, one of which is shown at 33, Fig. 2, may be set along the outer side of the pier at suit-able intervals, and may be connected by upper and lower timber string pieces 34:.

The concrete superstructure of the stifieners shown at 14., 1'5, 1, may be of simpler character than that of the main portion of the wharf. As illustrated in Figs. 6, 7 and 8' it comprises transverse sills 35, arranged on the supporting piles 20, 21, 22, and integral therewith. These sills are connected at the center by longitudinal-members 36 and on their ends are columns 37 supporting trans. verse beams 38 which in turn support joists 39 over which the deck 30 is extended. It will be understood that the parts mentioned are composed of reinforced concrete and are integral with each other, as in the ease of the main portion of the pier.

From the foregoing it will be seen tha the structure is practically monolithic, thus utilizing in an eflicient manner the strength of the individual units and enabling the structure to resist as a whole any stresses exerted on a particular portion. The large number of piles forming the substructure afi'ord maximum'resistance to vertical and lateral displacement in the relativ ely soft bed of the river, and since the piles are all rigidly connected by a superstructure, which is itself rigid, horizontal forces acting I against a point on the superstructure and tending to break the immediately adjacent iles are resisted not only by thelatte but also'by distant piles on either side. Reference to the drawing, especially Figs. 2, 4c, 6

and 8, will reveal the open character of the construction. T-his,,.feature, which is due in part to the arrangementofthe piles in bays, is'of special advantage. In a stream such as the Mississippi, which carries enor mous quantities of soil and other products of erosion, any obstruction to the current, causing loss of velocity, permits deposition of silt in great amount, which not only results in shoaling the stream but also causes severe lateral stresses on the piling from the up-stream side. This deposition is greatest during hlgh Water. For example, referring to Fig.2, if the normal surface of the river bed (sloping upwardly toward the bank) is that indicated at al -p, silting during a stage of high water may change the slope to that indicated by 91-1. WVhen the water recedes this accumulation slides back toward the center of the river, exerting stresses which in many cases wooden piles have been found unable to withstand. In the construction illustrated the arrangement of the piles in bays, giving wide spaces entirely free of obstruction, permits this outflow to proceed gradually and with'mi-nimum interference. The superstructure, which may be almost wholly submerged at high water is composed of heavier members but they are fewer in number than those of the. substructure and hence do not offer materially greater obstruction to the current at such times. 7

It is to be understood'that the invention is not limited to the details herein specifically illustrated and described but can be embodied in other forms without departure from its spirit as defined bythe following a river bank, a monolithic structure consisting of a longitudinal framework substantially parallel to the bank, and stiffening members extending from said framework to the bank, said framework being supported.

stifiening members being supported by Wide- 10 ly spaced groups of piles, each group comprising vertical piles and one or more'piles inclined in a plane perpendicular to the bank, substantially as described. v

In testimony whereof I hereto aflix my 15 signature.

' MAXWELL M, UPSON. 

